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CRASH SITE. SEVENTY MILES SOUTHEAST OF AREA 51:
Everyone takes refuge from the cold desert air inside Menno’s ship, which has the least amount of damage. Henry is excited to learn more about the spacecraft, and keeps pressing Menno for answers, but the man remains silent.
Menno folds his arms across his chest as he leans back in a chair, trying to hide the pain in his abdomen. The constant badgering for information by Henry is getting on his nerves, and he wishes he had the strength to shut the man up.
Lewis sees the anger building in his brother’s expression. The instant he sees Menno reach for his cross, he stands, gently takes Henry by the arm, and leads him outside the wreckage. “I would prefer you did not press my brother further. His temper is extremely short. I’ll try to answer your questions.”
“I have heard you can make this ship invisible. How is that possible?”
“All matter oscillates at its own frequency. The exterior of the ship is composed of various elements, two of which do not exist on this planet, and we cause them to resonate at frequencies which cannot be seen by the human eye or the type of radar used by the military.”
“What about converting the oil? How do you make the powder?”
“It is a complex process, too difficult to explain without a common frame of reference.”
They hear the sound of an aircraft approaching from the west and see the sunlight reflecting off a single-engine aircraft coming their way. Henry turns and runs back into the ship. “There is a plane coming. We need something to make a signal. Matches, flashlights, anything at all.” He spins around when he hears a voice behind him, and looks at Lewis, standing just outside the opening.
“That will not be necessary, Doctor Heinz. The aircraft is coming directly toward us. Now we must wait.”
***
Bull paces back and forth across the gray-tiled floor while he listens to Sterns and the voice of the pilot searching for the spaceships.
“I’m flying over them right now,” the pilot is explaining. “It’s a mess down there. The wreckage looks like two silver hockey pucks. What the hell are they?”
Sterns keys the microphone. “Never mind about that. What about casualties? Do you see any bodies near the wreckage?”
“I see a man standing outside. Wait a minute. A red-haired woman and two more men just walked out of the wreckage. They’re waving, so they must be all right. Here are the coordinates.”
Sterns jots down the information, then turns and hands the note to Bull. “Take it to the helicopter pilot and tell them you’re cleared. I’ll call and have two medical technicians ride with you. Just remember, we don’t have a lot of fuel left, so try to get in and out as soon as possible.”
Bull’s only concern is Christa and Alex, and from the description given by the pilot, they are still alive. “Thanks, Colonel. I’ll call you once we set down.”
***
Once the pilot waves his wings in acknowledgment, the aircraft turns and heads in the direction of the base. The group returns to the interior of Menno’s ship to await the arrival of a rescue helicopter. Menno remains impassive about their rescue until Alex sits in front of him. “What’s going to happen next, Mr. Cave? Are you going to arrest me?”
“It’s not up to me. I’m just a college teacher.”
“I have not broken any laws.”
“How about theft and murder? You did take a lot of crude oil and people died in the process.”
“Those charges will never hold up in court. I wasn’t the one stealing the oil or murdering those people. Those things were done by others. In fact, I doubt this will ever go to court. The government will never tell the public about aliens and spaceships.”
“You’re right. They won’t make this public, but they will make up some excuse to hold you in custody.”
Menno grins. “They want my new type of energy. I’m sure I can work something out in exchange for my freedom.”
Alex hears the deep thumping sound of an approaching helicopter, and everyone except Menno goes outside to watch. The aircraft sets down in a cloud of dust, and they watch Bull jump out the side door.
Bull throws his arms around Christa and hugs her fiercely, then sees Alex smiling at him. “Damn, I’m glad to see you two. When you busted through the roof of the hangar, I thought I’d never see you alive again.” He lets go of Christa and gives Alex a manly hug before he notices the blood in his friend’s hair. “Are you okay?”
“Just a minor cut. Menno is inside with a broken leg.” He sees two people climb out of the helicopter and grab a stretcher before walking over.
Bull turns to the approaching medics. “You’re needed inside.” He notices the stranger standing next to Henry. “Who’s that guy?”
“That’s Menno’s brother, Lewis Norton. They’re aliens.”
Bull’s mouth opens for a moment in surprise. “No shit?”
“It’s a long story, my friend. Let’s get out of here.”
The medics walk past them with Menno on a stretcher, and the rest follow them to the helicopter. One of the medics stops Alex before he climbs inside. “He has internal injuries. I can’t tell how badly right now, but he should be taken to a hospital as soon as we get back to the base. He needs surgery, and we’re not set up for it.”
They both climb in, and the helicopter takes off and heads for the base. Christa sees the concern in Alex’s eyes as he sits next to her. “What’s wrong?”
“Menno has internal injuries. If he doesn’t make it, we won’t have any way of learning how to use the crystals for our own benefit.”
“Won’t his brother know the same things he does?”
“I don’t know. I haven’t had a chance to talk to him. I want to apologize for getting you involved in all this. I’m just glad you’re all right.”
The helicopter pilot radios ahead, and once they set down in front of the main building at the base, the airplane that had searched for them is waiting to take Menno to the hospital in Las Vegas. Lewis wants to go with his brother, but Alex has a feeling it would be best if he stayed behind. He still needs answers, and hopes Lewis will cooperate.
Once the airplane departs with Menno, the group walks into the main building and Alex goes straight to the office to use the telephone. He informs Martin of what happened, his plans to keep Lewis there for questioning, and hopes he will cooperate in helping them understand how to use the crystals. “One more thing. They were not born on this planet.”
Martin is silent for a moment while he takes in the enormity of the situation. “Are you positive?”
“Yes. I’ll call you back once I have more information.”
“All right. I’ll let the president know what’s going on. Call me when you can.”
Alex enters the lounge and sees Lewis sitting next to Henry on the couch, and Christa and Bull standing off to one side. He notices Henry is grinning like a child on Christmas morning and sits next to him. “Good news?”
“Yes. Lewis said the powder Menno gave his followers won’t work anymore. He said they become inert after three days. Menno never intended to convert all the crude oil at one time. He just wanted to make a point. Lewis is going to help us.”
Alex looks at Lewis. “I was hoping you would. A lot of people are interested in your accomplishment.”
“Henry will accompany me to our underground facility, and I will explain how the crystals work.”
Alex remembers something Menno had mentioned. “Your brother said you tried to save this planet once before. What did he mean by that?”
Lewis tells him about his race of humans colonizing the Earth one-hundred and eighty-million-years ago, and the result of one of their failed experiments. “Once the volcanic activity ceased, one of their ships was sent here to distribute four devices at predetermined locations around the planet. They would remove the toxic molecules from the atmosphere so our people could return. They knew the ship arrived at this world, but they lost contact.”
“Why didn’t your brother talk to us about this new form of energy? Didn’t he realize the damage he would cause to life and property by suddenly stopping fuel production?”
“My brother is not a patient person. I warned him he was being irrational. I would have preferred gradual introduction of the conversion process. The people of this planet are currently too dependent on fossil fuel.”
Everyone turns when the door opens. Sterns has a concerned expression when he walks into the room and looks down at Lewis. “I’ve just received word your brother died on the way to the hospital. I’m sorry for your loss.” He looks at Alex. “Could you step outside for a moment?”
Alex stands and follows Sterns into the hallway. “What’s going on?”
“Director Donner just called. The Secretary of Defense wants Mr. Norton arrested and held in confinement until he can be transported to another facility to be interrogated.”
“We need his help, Colonel. We need to get him back to the underground facility. Can you help us?” Sterns remains silent for a moment and Alex can see the indecision in his expression.
“I could lose my commission over this, but take the jeeps and I’ll cover for you as long as I can. For now, my people are the only ones who know about the facility and I’ll do my best to keep them from talking.”
“Thank you.” Alex walks back into the room. “You need to leave right now, Mr. Norton.” They all turn and look up at him.
“What’s going on?” Christa asks.
Alex tells them about Sterns’ orders. “They want to arrest you. I need time to contact the right people and stop it from happening, so you need to leave right now. You have transportation waiting outside.”
Christa and Henry both leap to their feet and talk at the same time, each making an argument why they should go with Lewis.
Alex sees the pleading expressions in their eyes. “I understand, but what I’m doing is illegal. Both of you could be arrested for helping me with this.”
“I do not care,” Henry says and thrusts out his chin. “This is too important.”
“I’m going, too,” Christa insists.
Alex knows it’s urgent they leave right away, so doesn’t argue with them. “Then you’d better get moving.” Henry and Lewis rush past him, but Christa waits. “I thought you were going with them?”
“I am, but I wanted to talk to you in private first. I’m sorry I tried to force myself on you. Could we at least be friends?”
“I’d like to be much more than friends. I just need a little time. You see, since my wife was murdered, I’ve had a difficult time getting close to anyone new. I’m really sorry, but I don’t want the same thing to happen to you.”
“The cold war is over and you’re not an agent anymore, Alex. You’re just a professor, remember?”
He doesn’t feel like a teacher, not with everything that’s happened lately. “Maybe you’re right, but this is not over yet.”
“I can wait. Just do what you need to do and I’ll be waiting.” She reaches up and puts her arms around his neck, then gently pulls him down and kisses him on the cheek. “You’ll know where to find me.”
Alex hugs her tightly for a moment, then releases her and smiles. “I’ll walk you outside.”
***
WASHINGTON, D.C. TWO DAYS LATER:
Alex enters Martin’s office and sets a manila envelope on the desk before sitting down across from him. “Bull has his people starting up the refineries again. As it turns out, Menno knew most of the powder he gave his people would never be used. It seems it only works when it’s fresh.”
“That’s the best news I’ve had all day. The President convinced the Secretary of Defense that we need Lewis’s cooperation, so he’s backed off. Lewis will remain in his facility for now, but under constant supervision. Blackwood is being held in custody until his trial. He’ll probably receive the death penalty for his atrocities. You did a great job with this situation, Alex. Thank you.”
Alex indicates the envelope on the desk. “Lewis told me a story about some other devices that his people tried to use to clean the atmosphere on our planet. It’s all in the report. Their spaceship made it here, but they lost contact. The way I understand it, the devices are cylinders that when activated correctly, will draw certain harmful elements from the atmosphere.”
“What do you mean by activated correctly?”
“I don’t know all the details, but imagine if we had something like those cylinders right now. We could stop this global warming before it’s too late.”
“Does Lewis know how to build them?”
“I’m afraid not. For now, it looks like it’s up to us to solve our own problems.”
Martin sees Alex smile slyly. “I’ve seen that look before. What are you thinking?”
Alex continues to smile as he stands and taps his finger on the envelope. “I wonder where that spaceship crashed.”
The end.
I hope you enjoyed Dead Energy, and I would appreciate it if you will take a moment to write a short review.
Thank you.
James M. Corkill
The next exciting Alex Cave adventure.